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History

For more than 500 years the inhabitants of the Shetland Islands have produced some of the finest knitwear imaginable. Given the extremes of weather experienced in the Islands, knitwear provided much needed protection from the elements. The inclement weather encourages the unique Shetland sheep to grow a fibre which is softer and lighter in weight than conventional wool of its type, giving a distinct soft handle to garments knitted from this wool. What began as a necessity has been perfected, refined and adapted over the centuries. Women who ran the croft and home, knitted whenever time allowed. It was not an uncommon sight to see a woman knitting as she carried peat in a "kishy" or basket from the peat bank to her croft house.

Our knitwear is produced in the Shetland Islands to the highest standard using the finest natural wool from the native Shetland sheep. Our achievements is however due to the demand today for Shetland knitwear which retains the highest quality and reflects the skill, creativity and colours of our lovely Islands. This is still a thriving cottage industry where the knitters fingers are never idle and you can see some of their beautiful work here.